Forward: break the rules, blow it up, start over

I like Pepi and think we should go with him. Pefok isn't it, the whole country sees that.
Pepi is out of form and that's a big problem, but you can't get right on the bench. I'd consider Morris at the 9 if only to cause multiple defenders to crap their pants at his speed.

 

I just can’t put it all on the the forwards when they get zero service. Our attack basically involves our wingers/wide forwards dribbling down the sidelines, with the center forward alone in the middle with 2-3 defenders nearby and no teammate within 20 yards. Or, the direct ball from the back to the center forward who still has 2-3 defenders around and no teammates within 20 yards.

pefok blew one glorious opportunity, but neither he nor Pepi had any other good opportunities with the ball.

 

That's fair. You omit set pieces where our forwards aren't winning anything, but you are correct. The center forward in this system is there to set the press, hold the ball, fling it out wide, run to the middle and tap the ball in from an endline cross. No cross, no tap in.

 

Getting our strikers involved has always been a problem under GB.

If you want another option though, Brandon Vazquez has 4 goals and an assist in 4 games for Cincy. 7 goals and 2 assists in the past 9 games total. 23 and 6’3. Don’t watch Cincy so I can’t comment on how he would fit but that’s pretty good return for a team that has been struggling to find goals.

 

I always liked Vazquez but he couldn't finish to save his life. If he's turned that corner, he's a specimen with good feet. Maybe he gets a chance before the WC (knock on wood).

 

Just play our best player at the 9-8-10 or on the wing. wherever we are struggling the most or wherever we are dealing with an injury like Weston's.

I am talking about Gio Reyna, problem solved.

 

I agree that the strikers need better service, but at the same time, Kellyn Acosta and Gio Reyna served that ball up on a platter for Jordan Siebatcheu tonight, and he blew it, despite being in terrific club form. Go figure.

Honestly, with so many strikers out of form or not scoring goals with the national team, I'd probably rather just default to Josh Sargent. He probably contributes the most to the team outside of scoring goals in terms of involving teammates, pressing, etc.

This isn't a long-term solution, but I also would have considered calling up Jozy Altidore for this window as a 70-80 minute sub. (I'm sure I will take heat for saying that).

Assuming we qualify, there's still time between now and November for the pool to shake out:

• If Daryl Dike can stay healthy, round into form and start banging in goals for his club, he could be a great option for us up front.
• If Josh Sargent can find a club that will play him at striker (happy to have him move down a level) and he can build his confidence and improve his finishing, he's a decent option.
• Ricardo Pepi will have the rest of the spring + the fall to further settle in at Augsburg. If he can start scoring goals, he's a solid option.
• I could probably live with either Jordan Pefok or Gyasi Zardes as situational subs / 3rd strikers on the roster if either of the above guys are injured or out of form. Though I don't think either will win us matches at a World Cup.

Honestly, I think it would be an amazing story if Altidore somehow stormed back to form with New England and made it back to the national team as a super sub. He's still only 32.

 

Preferably with a sludge hammer.

 

If you aren't going to try and convert someone who is playing a different position then Jesus Ferreira should be the starting forward. He was better than Pepi when they were both at FC Dallas last season, and he has been in good form (playing at the 9 rather than at the 10 where he was last year) to start this season while Pepi has been struggling. Ferreira is good a pressing and is the best at getting key passes and assists out of all our forwards by a large margin. The knock against him was that he couldn't score, but he scored a hat trick in his last game and another one in preseason so maybe he is better at scoring than people think.

Dike doesn't contribute much aside from goals and his goals last year were inflated by PKs. I'm not convinced that he is better than Pepi.

Zardes isn't even starting in MLS right now.

Hope isn't playing at all for a team that is only slightly better than an MLS team.

Sargent at least is starting for a (really bad) Premier League team. However, he has not been playing as a center forward and hasn't been very productive in terms of stats.

Pefok is the only one who can match Ferreira in club form, but he doesn't seem to fit with the style of play of the national team and he didn't impress vs Mexico.

 

There's this pattern over the last two years.

Berhalter calls up guys, they don't perform, the board falls in love with an alternative. Berhalter calls alternative guy up, he doesn't perform, the board falls in love with yet another alternative. He doesn't perform either, so the board goes back to the first guy.

People are now back to calling for Ferreira, as if he did anything in his opportunities last window. He missed some relatively straightforward opportunities. People calling for Sargent, as if he did anything when he was given a chance.

I think at this point of qualifying, it's time to stop chopping and changing. The guys are the guys.

Start Pepi again this weekend. If he's the guy, then he's the guy. Pepi is our leading goals-scorer in the ocho. By the way, he's scored more goals than any forward for Mexico or Costa Rica. Same number of goals as Michail Antonio. Who's scored more goals than Pepi in the Ocho? Jonathan David and Cyle Larin of Canada. Blackburn of Panama. That's it. Pepi is the joint 4th leading scorer in the Ocho.

Worth noting that the leading scorer in the entire hex in 2018 was Christian Pulisic. For any nation. This qualifying cycle he has two.

We need more goals, more assists, more dangerous chances created from the likes of Pulisic, Weah, our central midfield and everybody else as well. It's not just the #9. Heaven forbid we look dangerous on a set piece......................which is where the USMNT used to score a ton of its goals. How about we score from a corner? How quaint that would be!!!

 

I do agree that Pepi should start Sunday. Having Gio and CP on the pitch will be helpful to generate chances although the loss of Weah will be impactful since we were already without BA. But Pepi should start and we should be able to generate a good amount of chances.

 

I have to agree.

(1) I don’t know what Pulisic’s problem with the USMNT, but he’s not good. More games than not, he’s one of the worst players on the field. And he can say all this crap that there’s too much or he feels too much responsibility, but the truth is it’s just a lack of discipline and motivation for these games. There were a few times that I saw him give up on plays when Mexico had a break. I don’t care if you’re the center forward, don’t give up on a play when the opponent is countering in strength. He’s lucky that Mexico didn’t have the class to punish his complacency. And I never saw him make any in-behind runs... he hardly ever asks for the ball. He just jogs up and down the field like he doesn’t want to be there. No, Pulisic’s problem isn’t that he cares too much. It’s that he doesn’t care enough.

(2) I know we all are getting frustrated with Pepi because we want him to score. I want him to score too. But when did he even have a half-chance last night? At least, I saw a player who was trying to work his ass off. At some point, if you’re a center forward, and you’re not scoring, at least press the hell out of their backline and hold the ball up well. I thought Pepi did that.

(3) We need less rotation. It’s hard with all the injuries, suspensions, and everything else, but at some point, we have to quit experimenting and get this team to gel. That’s how we get someone like Pepi to break out a funk. He can’t get pulled every time he doesn’t go 10 minutes without scoring. That’s a confidence killer.

And (4) I haven’t ruled out Ferreira though. Pefok may have ended up on my shit list last night - not even for missing the sitter. Players do that. It sucks but I can forgive a once-in-a-blue-moon miss. What I don’t forgive is the lethargic performance. He never made any runs. He couldn’t hold the ball up for squat. And he never pressed. He looked like a big, dumb abominable snowman who never heard of the game of soccer before. Hopefully, that was a one-off. But he was atrocious. And he saved Pulisic from earning the wooden spoon.

 

Pepi should not have been called in. His form has been poor. And he hasn't been with the team long enough to be 'the guy'.

A two-forward system could be considered. Just play Weah and Pulisic up top with Reyna sitting behind.

 

I'm hoping for Ferreira against Panama and think it may be a good thing that he will play the spot very differently. We have no one who can lead the line, so a guy who drops off and leaves space for the wings to cut more centrally looks like a good option to me. I agree with the idea to go further and just call it a 2 forward setup with a player in the hole behind and would love to see Gio in that spot. But functionally, slotting in Ferreira may do a lot of the same and keeping Gio on the right isn't a horrible idea with Weah out.

 

We have no choice but to be patient. I think the chances are decent one of Pepi, Sargent, Ferreira, Dike, Hoppe develops. None of them is going to be world class. But already all five of them brings certain things to the table that I like.

I'm ok with also looking at Weah and Morris at the 9. I think we are using Pulisic at the best position for him. Reyna potentially could be a 9 but I think he is more valuable elsewhere.

 

If Berhatler sticks with 433 then I'd like to see a front line of CP, Ferreira, and Arriola. Ferreira and Arriola have had a growing chemistry. And Ferreira has the hot hand.

 

I think this might be the best option when we are healthy, but I don’t love it. Hopefully, one of the forwards in the pool comes good.

 

Panama's two center backs are pretty good. They would do well against Pefok and Pepi. Going with Ferreira strikes me as a good idea. He will at least pull them out of position some.

 

Pulisic played a false nine role with Chelsea for a few matches, he didn’t flash brilliance in any form but was credited for his runs. I like Pepi but without a true 8 he was never going to have much connection unless it came from the wings. Plus even if Pepi’s skill as a hold up nine was on display versus Mexico, it’s not like Acosta was anywhere to be found for service. Also there is the striker who was promised that could be in form by World Cup time. Hopefully Berhalter doesn’t think that ship has sailed and gives Dike a few chances in some friendlies.

 

We don't have anyone right now that is reliable.

That is the reality.

Still we didn't do Pepi any favors with our lack of service.

Perhaps we need to play a more creative player in the MF than the 3 we played yesterday?

Someone who can break the lines and set up chances that don't rely on throwing in a cross to a single CF surrounded by 3-4 defenders or the occasional endline cutback?

It would help if more than McKennie could score a goal or two from MF also.

No easy solutions, but a Lewandowski is not walking through that door anytime soon, so we need an alternative approach.

 

I suspect we'll see Ferreira against Panama.

................it would actually be nice to see some consistency in the position.

Its just a non-stop experiment in which nobody seems to gain any momentum.

Pepi literally has more goals than any forward on Mexico and Costa Rica. Stick with it. Have patience. We need more service from the midfield and wings. Better service on set pieces.

 

We still have Dike, and Hoppe to try.
Pepi hasn't scored in months, yet GB called him thinking he had another Honduras-like game in him.
Pepi looked physically weak. There was one play that he had the angle on a loose ball and the defender just pushed him to the side to get the ball. The kid needs to bulk up.
Too bad GB lost hope on Sargent. Remember, Sargent is playing out of position on a relegation team, yet, he scored twice in the PL. He should be getting another look, but GB goes with his hunches more than stats.

Is there any up-and-coming forward?

 

If you're only counting his time with Orlando. Apparently you missed his Barnsley stint of which zero of his goals were PK's. If he can get healthy soon he's our #9 going forward because he brings attributes to the table none of our other forwards can.